All We Need is One...

...one little break in the rain...one little break in the clouds...one little ray of sunlight, and we're outside!!! Hello my ole' friend sunshine...I've missed you, and so have the kids!!!

The Grass is Always Greener

As I sit and look out my window and the flattened grass and miscellaneous scattered puddles left over from last nights rain, I can only hope that our sun comes back. Is this Oregon weather...indeed...is this why I'm not a huge fan of living in Oregon...indeed! I'm a sun girl...truly a sun girl, and I'm pretty sure I could live in 100 degree weather year round and be content (with AC in my house of course!). My kids however don't share my same passion for the heat and back a few weeks ago when our lovely Oregon weather had record highs...they were miserable. I'll give it to them, that it was a little bit of a bummer that they just couldn't go outside and play, play, play, because it truly was too hot...but I sure thought it was fantastic!!! Anyways...for their sake, I was begging for at least a slight drop in temperature so the kiddos didn't have to be so "housebound".

Since we weren't getting the reprieve that we were hoping for...we opted for a day at the coast instead! I'm still amazed that in a 40 mile drive, the temperature outside could drop 40 degrees...but it did, and we enjoyed the break!

Blessings,

A Splash from the Past...week!

I know, I know, yet another long blogging absence...well, just know that we're alive and kicking, I swear! Anyways...

The heat here in this otherwises rainy state was obnoxious this last week. We had record breaking high temperatures, stores sold out of A/C units all throughout the state, and people doing any and everything they could to beat the heat! Us included!

Blessings,

Strawberries, Swings and Sweets!

A week or so ago, the kids and I took our annual trip down to LonePine Farms to pick strawberries! I never know how well they are going to do and how much "policing vs. picking" that I'll be doing...but they actually did quite well! Kynlee was content picking and mashing strawberries, while eating dirt, and Kallen actually picked about 5 lbs, while only eating a pound!

As I've mentioned before, the Farm has all kinds of activities for the kids, and it's really quite the afternoon adventure when we head down there! We picked the berries, headed out to the playground, watched the fish in the pond, and even ended with some ice cream! Yeah for fun afternoons with well behaved and happy kiddos!!!

Blessings,

A Break from the Cows!

On Saturday, we all ventured out to watch Kevin's brother participate in a local "Team Penning" competition! The kids were in heaven with all the horses, but after watching several cowboys chase several cows (none of whom were uncle Craig)...we all needed a break!

Clear blue skies and a park down the street...what more could we ask for!

Blessings,

It's fun...and it tastes good too!

Snow is a rare thing in these parts...though like many other places across the country, we were blessed with it's beauty today!

Kevin and I woke up to a quiet little voice whispering in our ears "It snow-ded outside...come see", and sure enough we opened our eyes to a soft little dusting of crisp, white flakes. Those crisp white flakes, soon turned into soft mushy flakes, but that's besides the point. A short drive to "the peak", and we found more!!!

Kallen loved sledding,

and Kynlee loved eating!

...and, by the looks of the continuous snow falling outside...we'll have another fun day in the snow tomorrow!

Blessings,

Two Kiddos, Two Smiles...finally!

I know...don't all gasp at the same time, but I, queen of a million pictures a month, haven't been taking any pictures lately. Mostly because my children refuse...and yes, I mean refuse to have anything to do with the camera, but also because there doesn't seem to be any time. Anyways, I've tried being sneaky and pulling the camera out at the last minute, I've tried putting things on my head and acting goofy, and I've even tried bribes...but to no avail. I either get screams, or the backs of heads, and after a couple hundred pictures of the backs of their heads, I'm pretty sure I'll remember what a head w/ hair looks like in a few years, and there isn't really a need to get any more of those "precious" shots. So...I've quit for a while. Just plain quit taking pictures.

Well, Sunday we went as a family to the Pumpkin Patch, and even during my photography strike, if you will, I had to take the camera...You've got to get pictures of the pumpkin patch, right! Well, I got Kal, when I told him to turn around and smile (before he knew I had the camera)...

and I got Kynz in her typical, fingers in the mouth, act like I don't hear you pose. All the acting silly, and making funny noises, never fazed her...but the goat looks amused!

So...after finally picking our pumpkins (Kallen wanted a small one he could carry, but they were all bigger than an elephant, so we had to settle on one we could carry together), I picked up the kids, set them on a pumpkin, which amused them long enough to back up, call their names and "shoot"! Ahhhh...how cute are they! Finally...a picture with them both looking, no fingers in Kynlee's mouth, and smiles ta butte! Yes...maybe I won't retire my camera after all!

Blessings,

I Tried!!!

There are people, who tried and true, have their children's pictures professionally taken. Whether it's monthly, quarterly, or even yearly...The "professional" pictures are a necessity to document the ever growing and changing lives of their children.
While that is fine and dandy for those people...that is not us!!!

When Kallen was 6 months old, we went to one of those mall studios and had a session done, and just last year when Kynlee was born, we had a 15 minute promotional sitting with both kiddos! That's it, in the nearly 3 years. It's not that I haven't wanted to document those stages in their lives, but it seems to me that the 300+ pictures I take of my kiddos each month, documents those times just fine!

Well, that being said...I had a wild hair this morning, to go take some pictures of the kids, that were a little more "staged" then normal! I was hoping to find a park with little or no activity, and start snapping away. My biggest goal actually, was to get the kids to sit together for 2 seconds so I could actually get a decent picture of them together, something I have yet to achieve.

Yet again...this is what I got when I tried to get the two of them to both look, and both smile at the same time:

The..."get away", "near choke", "what are you doing mom", "I'm not listening to your 100 times of asking me to look and smile mom", and my personal favorite..."Now what" poses!

Kallen was pretty cooperative when he was by himself, and actually looked at the camera when I asked him too...well, once at least!!!

Kynlee on the other hand, just wanted to play peek-a-boo

and when her brother found a squirrel hole, she was just as intrigued by it as he was

and we finished off our morning at the park, with a little 'follow the leader' through the "dinosaur bones"

All and all...the kids had a blast, and I decided that sometimes real life pictures are just as memorable and "capturing" as staged shots...so...I'll just continue to shoot away, and when I get the cute ones, woohoo!!!

Blessings,